Diethyl ether finds various uses as a solvent, anesthesia, and fuel. Currently diethyl ether is produced as a byproduct of the dehydration of ethanol to make ethylene using sulfuric acid, as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,585,339, 5,227,141 and 3,847,756. Typically diethyl ether is favored in the dehydration at lower reaction temperatures, but a mixture of ethylene and diethyl ether is still present. Other processes, such as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,670,620, have sought to increase selectivity in the dehydrating reaction of ethanol towards ethylene by using a zeolite at elevated temperatures.
Further, ethanol is conventionally produced from feedstocks where price fluctuations are becoming more significant. That is, fluctuating natural gas and crude oil prices contribute to fluctuations in the cost of conventionally produced petroleum, natural gas or corn or, other agricultural product-sourced ethanol, thus creating the need for reactants other than ethanol.
Therefore, the need exists for a method for directly producing diethyl ether and for producing diethyl ether on a commercial scale from a non-alcohol source.